FACT SHEET

Digester Technology:  The AVATAR Advantage

The AVATAR anaerobic digester offers many clear advantages over traditional manure management systems:

1. Employs a plug-flow system, which has the most reliable track record among digester systems.

2. Generates fuel from manure that can be used in boilers or electrical generators.

3. Produces sanitized solids for animal bedding or composting, pathogen-free fertilizer for direct field application or sale, and liquids for direct field application of nutrients. These by-products will reduce costs as well as create an income stream for the farmer through potential sales.

4. A modular design platform enables the system to be installed alongside existing barns. Can also be re-configured and moved as needs change.

5. Installed on packed dirt and crushed rock flooring, not poured concrete, making it a non-fixed asset. Banking institutions will finance the system as farm equipment.

6. Controls odors and accompanying pests.

7. Cleaning takes 1-3 days every 3-5 years, but can vary based on the type of bedding used. If more than one cylinder is in use, one can be shut down for cleaning while the others continue uninterrupted processing of manure.

8. The system is automated and runs 24/7. Monitoring the system takes just a half-hour per week or just a few hours per month.

9. Investment in the system is a fraction of the cost of digesters used by large farming operations and will pay for itself within 5-7 years. Life expectancy of the fiberglass unit is approximately 30 years.

10. Due to pending environmental regulations, farmers will no longer be able to spread raw manure on their acreage, while rising fuel prices are making it cost-prohibitive to truck manure to distant dumping grounds.

11. Government agencies are increasingly offering financial incentives to farmers who employ environmentally responsible management practices.